Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra Review: Mega-Zoom Camera and Mini Display 

If you let it run free, the camera of this smartphone creates a 120x zoom. Our test explains why you shouldn’t do that and whether this smartphone belongs to the upper class.

With the Mi 11 Ultra from Xiaomi, you have a relatively thick device in your hand, measuring 12.6 millimeters at its thickest point because of the camera module. After all, the camera housing that extends across the entire width helps keep the device stable on the table. Devices with an asymmetrical camera hump, such as Samsung’s Galaxy S21 Ultra and Apple’s iPhone 12 Max Pro, tend to tilt.

The screen is giant at 6.81 inches (17.3 cm) and has an excellent resolution of 3200 x 1440 pixels (WQHD +), which also needs a lot of energy. This phenomenon is especially true when the maximum refresh rate is set to 120 Hertz (Hz).

With the brightness fully turned up and all options switched on, the Mi 11 Ultra achieved a runtime of 12.5 hours in my video playback endurance test. This is not bad and is enough for a day with regular use, but not more. If the runtime is more important to you, it is advisable to switch the screen to 2400 x 1080 pixels and 60 Hz.

In any case, the image quality is still excellent. The color reproduction is realistic, the sharpness of detail is perfect, and the picture is still bright enough even when the sun is shining. The edges of the screen, which are gently curved into the frame, may have their fans; I am not one of them, if only because such screens are more sensitive to falls than straight displays.

On the back, however, there is precisely such a display, which is tiny at 1.1 inches (2.79 cm) on the diagonal. It can alert you when new notifications arrive, and if you double-tap it, it will display the time, date, and battery level for up to 30 seconds. However, all of these functions can also be done on the main screen. The only nice thing is the possibility to use the second display to take selfies with the primary camera. However, it doesn’t seem to have been fully thought through, because portrait mode doesn’t offer this option. 

Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra Specifications 

120x Zoom: Impressive but Not Practical 

The cameras have a lot to offer. The primary camera delivers good pictures with 50 megapixels and f / 1.95; the ultra-wide-angle camera (f / 2.2) with 48 megapixels is hardly inferior. Interesting is the telecamera, which, similar to the Huawei P40 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, is housed transversely in the housing thanks to periscope optics and has a 48-megapixel sensor (f/4.1).

Because this camera, like the primary camera, has optical image stabilization, you can take good close-ups with it. This feature works well even with a tenfold hybrid magnification because the processor in this variant still intervenes relatively cautiously in the photos.

But it gets ferocious when you use the 120x zoom with which Xiaomi advertises the device. Easily recognizable long-distance shots are indeed possible, at least if you place the device on a solid surface. Still, they don’t have much to do with reality due to the massive interpolation of the image pixels.

Fast Performance and Colorful Design 

To match the display, camera, and price, Xiaomi packs the fast Snapdragon 888 processor from Qualcomm into the Mi 11 Ultra. So it is not surprising that the mobile phone achieves top scores in benchmark tests, which put it on a par with upper-class models such as the OnePlus 9 Pro, the Oppo Find X3 Pro, and the US version of the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.

This performance should be enough to keep the phone running smoothly through the next major Android updates. Since it ships with Android 11 and Xiaomi usually delivers two significant updates for the Mi series, you can expect that Android 12 and 13 will work on it. Xiaomi uses Google’s Android operating system with its MIUI user interface, which gives the devices their colorful look. Whether it looks good is subjective.

Conclusion

The Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra is a decent smartphone with excellent performance, a very good camera configuration, and a good display. The 120x zoom feature is interesting but quite difficult to use, as the images are not always viewable even at the maximum zoom levels. The rear mini display is also very useful for notifications as well as taking selfies with the primary camera but has a few drawbacks. Overall, the Mi 11 Ultra boasts of a solid set of hardware and camera options, but some features are more for visual appeal than practical use.

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